Fences at Baytown Little Theater

Set in 1957 Pittsburgh, Fences by August Wilson is a poignant and powerful exploration of family, dreams, and the human condition. The play centers around Troy Maxson, a former baseball star of the Negro Leagues, who now works as a garbage collector. His unfulfilled dreams and the racial barriers that kept him from the Major Leagues have left Troy embittered, and his simmering resentment impacts his relationships with those closest to him—his devoted wife Rose, and his ambitious son Cory, who aspires to follow in his father’s athletic footsteps.

As Troy struggles to reconcile his past with the harsh realities of his present, he becomes increasingly entrenched in his beliefs, creating a metaphorical fence that distances him from his family and the possibilities of the future. Through Troy’s journey, Wilson masterfully delves into themes of generational conflict, racial tension, and the complexities of love and loyalty within a family. Fences is not just a story of one man’s fight against the world, but a universal tale of the human spirit, grappling with the fences we build in our own lives—those meant to keep things out, and those meant to keep things in. This timeless drama resonates deeply, inviting audiences to reflect on their own struggles, dreams, and the fences that define their lives.

Authors

• August Wilson

Tony Awards and Nominations for Fences